12 Dec
2006
12 Dec
'06
10:50 a.m.
David Baron wrote:
Accepted. No intent to ridicule anything or anyone.
The beginning of this thread was Sottware sutiable for children and Squeak and
Etoys recommended. Squeak is a programming environment which will run Etoys
(which I did not find to install on it). It is fun, cute, allbeit out of
date. Leave out kids that do not read fluently English--everything on linux
is multilingual/unicode nowadays. For kids, a more symbolic interface could
be used. I would like to see Etoys. I haven't touched smalltalk in the 26
years but may try some squeakie stuff sometime.
Just installed it. A very creative but
frustrating package. As with
too many of these things, one must be able to read and that in
English (or a few European languages?). Fine print abounds in what at
first looks like a very sparse UI.
The program abounds with objects and widgets. Some very creative and
versatile, others frustratingly crude. Graphic objects like squares
cannot be resized (nothing stops one from reprogramming them and then
dutifully uploading the scalable versions for others to
enjoy--smalltalk was once the rage.)
* * *
Sorry. I've been harsh in my reply, with no true reasons to do so.
I should have just said that maybe you've to give it another try. Or
investigate a bit more on the project.
Sorry again. > Apart from Alan Kay himself
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viewpoints_Research_Institute), take a
look at the Viewpoint Research Board of Advisors:
http://www.viewpointsresearch.org/about.html
John Perry Barlow, Vint Cerf, Richard Dawkins, Doug Engelbart, Marvin
Minsky, Nicholas Negroponte, Seymour Papert and so on.
Doesn't any of these names ring a bell? Anyway, at VR, they're using
and continuing the development of squeak.
Did you know that you're making ridicule of a big chunk of the history
of informatics?
Ciao,
c.